Shaheedi Purab of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji: Hind di Chadar

The Shaheedi Purab of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib Ji remembers the martyrdom of the ninth Sikh Guru at Chandni Chowk in Delhi in November 1675. He gave his life not for his own faith but for the right of others to practise theirs, and Sikhs remember him as Hind di Chadar, the shield of India.

The plea of the Kashmiri Pandits

Under the emperor Aurangzeb, the Pandits of Kashmir were being pressed to convert to Islam. A group led by Pandit Kirpa Ram came to the Guru at Anandpur Sahib and asked for his help. The Guru told them to tell the authorities that if Guru Tegh Bahadur could be made to convert, they would all follow. He then set out for Delhi with a few companions and was arrested on the way.

Chandni Chowk

Held in Delhi, the Guru was given three choices: accept Islam, perform a miracle to prove his holiness, or die. He refused the first two. To break his resolve, his companions Bhai Mati Das Ji, Bhai Sati Das Ji and Bhai Dyala Ji were put to death before his eyes. On the day, the Guru was beheaded in the open at Chandni Chowk. In the confusion of a storm, Bhai Jaita Ji carried the Guru's head to Anandpur Sahib, and Bhai Lakhi Shah Vanjara took his body to his house and set the house alight to cremate it.

How the day is observed

Gurdwara Sis Ganj Sahib marks the place of the martyrdom, and Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib the place of the cremation. Sangats hold Akhand Paath, kirtan, katha and Nagar Kirtan, and many recite his saloks, which close the reading of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji.